Give Me Truth
by brokenboyscout
Summary: An unfamiliar woman is talking to Ressler, and Liz hates to admit it, but it makes her jealous. Later on, Ressler is hurt in the process of trying to keep Liz safe. Keenler fanfic. Special thanks to my beta (AKA theblacklister23) for helping me set up my ff account!
1. Tiring Persuit

**Special thanks to pl3ase-tak3-m3-t0-w0nd3rland for helping get started with a ff account. This is my first officially uploaded fanfiction. I'm truly sorry if any character seems OOC. Hope you guys like!**

They had just got the criminal Red told them about. This particular blacklisters' specialty was hanging his victims by their feet. With their wrists sliced wide open. You would think that the death would already be painful enough, yet he watched his victims while they slipped into unconsciousness. His face was scattered with freckles and one ice cold blue eye was slightly higher than the other. His eyes would also fleet from side to side like he couldn't control his own movements.

When they found him, he was just about to cut a decent sized slit in one of the victims, until Ressler jumped into action without warning, pummeling him to the ground. Causing the blade the blacklister was holding to fly in the air and knick Ressler's forehead. It wasn't too bad of a cut, but it wasn't a comfortable one either. Catching the criminal wasn't easy, it never was; but after a six hour hunt, they got him.

Elizabeth Keen waited in the car, watching her partner, Donald Ressler, talk to a female officer with blonde hair. More than likely about the capture of the blacklister. She wasn't paying much attention to them until she saw the female officer raise her small hand onto Ressler's forehead, right beside his new cut. Liz's face scrunched up in disapproval as she snorted to herself. Believe it or not, that small touch ticked her off. She was already tired as hell from running all around trying to catch the criminal; she didn't need more reason to be pissed. However small the reason was. She sighed and lied her head back on the seat. All the while thinking if she had to wait another five minutes, she would grab Ressler's ear and drag him to the car.

Then her thoughts took a different route. Ressler never takes this long talking to someone after a case. Usually he just skips to the important parts that need to be said and leaves. The only person he really talks to in detail about a case is her… and if anyone hasn't noticed, it was in fact, not her. It's been thirty minutes of him just talking to that damn woman. Why would he want to make this already long night longer with a pointless conversation that could wait until another day. Or never, if it was up to her. Then she wondered how she was still awake, and how he, who not to mention did most of the ass beating, was still standing. Liz wanted oh so bad to be in bed right now sleeping. Even if it had to be in a motel. So, she drifted off into an uncomfortable sleep. So much for dragging him to the car by his ear..

She was still sleeping until another ten minutes later, she heard the driver's door softly shut. She opened her eyes to see Ressler openly staring at her. She blinked up at him, confused, as he started to smile and chuckle_. 'What the hell?' _ She looked away and yawned, now noticing she had slightly drooled while she was asleep. '_Seriously? Drool is what he's smiling about?_' She wiped it off quickly, noting that he still hadn't looked away. She waited a few more seconds for him to stop, but he didn't. She cleared her throat.

"What, Res? You took forever and I was tired. What took you so long, anyways?" She slightly squinted wondering what he was _really_ gawking at. He's seen her before in a situation similar to this one. A case had gotten so long she just couldn't keep her eyes open. With her drooling and head nodding from side to side occasionally. So, why exactly was he staring?

He instantly dropped his already small smile and closed his eyes. Did he really make her wait that long?

"Shit, sorry Liz. I didn't know i took so long."

She sighed impatiently. Of course he didn't, he wasn't the one waiting. As she looked out the window, she noticed there was nobody else there except for them and one other police car, hich she assumed belonged to the woman Ressler had just got done talking to. He finally took his eyes off of her and looked straight, lifting his large calloused hand to put the keys into the ignition. Then he started backing up and looked over at her and found that she was already drifting to the peaceful darkness of sleep. H felt sorry for her. If he'd been faster, she would've already been at her hotel, fast asleep.

All the sudden there was a honk, and Liz, who was almost asleep, jolted upright and looked to were the sound came from. She saw that the woman was waving from the inside of her police car, but the wave wasn't directed at her, it was for Ressler. She forced herself not to flip the womn off for startling her. Then she turned to look at Ressler and he had his hand up in an unmoving wave… and he was laughing. She was furious.

"What is wrong with you, Res? Her eyebrows were knitted together in anger. He was still laughing because of her little jumpy scare and she pinched his arm like a five year old child. If he wanted to play immature, she could too.

"Ouch…" He said while rubbing his arm, now chuckling.

"Shut up." She replied trying not to smile.

It didn't take too long to get to her motel, but she was already passed out… _again. _Since it was partly his fault she was so tired, he opened his door and walked to the other side of the car. He then opened Liz's door, unbuckled her, and picked her up bridal style. He made his way through the motel and found her room, 46. Since she was in his arms, he had a hard time getting out the spare room key she had given him when she'd first started staying here. He always kept it in his pocket, just in case she ever needed him, and he guesses it finally came of good use.

He slid the key in the keyhole and turned the nob. When inside, he backed up against the door and shut it with his foot. He walked over to the bed, gently putting her down and tugged the comforter until he could cover her in it. When she was all wrapped up and warm, he had to fight the urge to leave a small kiss on her forehead. So he just sat there, looking a the one woman he truly undoubtedly cared about. His thoughts of her were suddenly broken when he heard a tired voice.

"Ressler, you're doing it again."

He swallowed and licked his bottom lip nervously. He tried to hide his embarrassment, but failed miserably.

"Doing what?" He chuckled. He knew what he was doing, it'd be obvious to a blind man, but he wanted to know for sure what was going on through her head.

"Staring at me… I know I look like a grizzly bear sleeping, but you don't need to rub it in."

Ressler laughed and shook his head.

"Liz you do not look like a grizzly bear. Not at all."

"Oh really? What do I look like then?" She replied, opening her eyes to see his response. He was caught of guard from which should just be an easy question.

"You uhh.. look like a Liz." He smiled lightly. She rolled her eyes in jest and smiled back.

"What exactly does 'a Liz' look like to you, Res?"

He sighed and decided to tell her the first thing that came to mind.

"Perfect."

She blushed into a crimson red color at his confession and watched him as he started to back away towards the door.

"Goodnight, Liz." He whispered.

"Goodnight, Res." She whispered back wishing he could just stay with her. She listened to the door open and close, then to his footsteps which were getting farther and farther away. She lay in bed thinking about how the man who ha just made her feel so aggravated had just made her feel so incredible. All by one word. Of course in the past, Tom had told her she was perfect and all that gooey love stuff… but the word coming from Ressler's mouth, made her heart melt.

For the first time of many that day, she fell asleep happy.


	2. A Familiar Face

Three days passed since the moment Liz shared with Ressler. She couldn't stop thinking about it since. Ressler couldn't tell that she was in a daze most of the time because they were so damn busy this past week. So, It's just been all business between them for those three long and boring days.

Now was their day off and Liz had a bowl of Raison Bran cereal while she was watching the morning news. She soon got bored of sitting around and decided to go and get groceries she had been lacking on getting. '_Hmm, actually getting up and out of the house for something other than work for once.'_ She thought, huffing out a breath of air. She dumped her cereal bowl in the sink and went into her bathroom to get ready.

She grabbed her toothbrush and sat on the toilet brushing her teeth. When she was done, she got up, flushed the toilet, and washed her hands with her toothbrush still in her mouth. She grabbed the toothbrush and rinsed her mouth out, liking the feel of being fresh and minty. Then, took her bag of make-up and put minimal mascara and lip gloss on; rubbing her lips together so the gloss was equally spread across her lips. She grabbed a stray hair tie sitting on her bathroom counter and put her hair up into a high bobbing ponytail and stared at herself in the mirror, deciding if she should do anything else. '_Meh.'_

She had her keys and was almost out the door when she looked down and saw she was still wearing her pajamas. She huffed a sigh, shrugged, and went out the door anyway. She figured she wasn't trying to impress anyone, so who cares if she was in her pjs or not?

She was in the dairy isle when she saw him. Her heart stopped for a split second. She tried to scramble the other way but it was already too late.

"Keen?" A familiar voice sounded behind her retreating figure. She shut her eyes tight and turned back with her cart in her hands.

"Hey…. Ressler,"

She saw his eyes travel up and down her body quickly, for her not to notice, even though she did, and he smiled. She blushed and her yes got a little wider as she cursed herself for making the decision to keep her pajamas on. He saw how flustered she was and tried to relieve her of the embarrassment she was feeling.

"No need to explain… It doesn't even look bad." And it's true, it didn't. No shoulder pads or anything like her work clothes. She looked innocent and comfortably beautiful.

She laughed lightly. "So, you're behind on getting groceries too, or...?"

"Actually…" He started to say something as he looked back. As if he was looking for something… or some_one._

Then, as if on cue, a familiar blonde petite woman came up to Ressler and grabbed his arm. Liz scrunched her nose in the slightest, confused. Then she remembered, it was the female cop Ressler was talking to on the night they caught that awful blacklister…. The same night he had told Liz she looked perfect…

Liz raised her eyebrows and forced a smile. All her muscles tensed seeing this woman. _Especially_ with Ressler.

"Who's this?" Liz asked Ressler with the forced smile still intact.

"My name's Kimberly, but you can call me Kimmy." The woman answered for Ressler as she reached out her small hand while her other hand was firmly grasping Ressler's arm. Liz took her small hand with her own and told the blonde woman her name.

"Nice to meet you, Liz." Kimmy said, and she snatched her hand back from Liz and locked it on Ressler's arm, just like the other; went on tip-toe and kissed him on the cheek. Liz bit her tongue and told herself to stop being jealous. But it's like this lady was _trying_ to get her blood to boil.

Liz swallowed and said softly that it was about time for her to head home. All the while Ressler held a sad gaze upon Liz. While walking away, she fought back the tears that were threatening to make an appearance on her face.


	3. Hello, Goodbye

Liz walked out of the store with all her things she just bought, never looking back. She feared that if she did, she would run back and pound Kimberly's face into a wall. She usually wasn't the jealous type, but when it came to Ressler, something would just come over her and she would need every last ounce of strength she had left just to shut the hell up. When she got to her car she threw all the stuff in and got inside. That's when she let the tears she had been holding fall. What the hell was that? The way Kimmy held onto Ressler was enough to make her want to throw a hundred punches her way.

When she got back to her house she set down all her groceries on the nearest table and went up to her room where she curled up into a ball and sat in complete silence. She felt like she was still sad enough to cry, yet no tears were coming. Soon the sadness turned into anger. What she came to find out was that she wasn't mad at the blonde woman named Kimmy, or even Ressler. No, she was mad at herself. She was mad at herself for letting her fall for him. Especially to fall for him when she never knew how he felt about her. Yet another mistake in profiling… Which she was supposed to be good at. She shook her head in annoyance.

That night, before she had to get back to work the next morning, she planned to be the first one there. That plan was ruined, however. She woke up a little late for her likings and rushed to get ready. If she wasn't the first person to get there, she thought, she might as well be the last.

And last she was. As she stepped off the elevator her eyes traveled straight to the office she shared with Ressler. Sure enough she saw a familiar ginger head in the office drinking coffee with stacks of case papers to his left and to his right. She stood there and tried to comprehend what would all go down today until she was snapped out of her thoughts. "Uhhh… Agent Keen, Cooper is asking for you." Aram's soft voice sounded from beside her. Liz gave him a small smile and nodded then headed straight up to her bosses office without looking back at Ressler's figure in their window again.

Cooper looked at Liz over his glasses as she came into his office. Oddly, Red was sitting silently beside him. Even odder, he acted as if nobody had come into the room.

"Good morning, agent Keen. Please take a seat."

When she sat down, Cooper folded his morning newspaper and set it aside, now looking at her straight on.

"You've been assigned to a field operation. This task will take you about three to four days at most."

She wasn't used to being assigned a mission for this long, even though it was only four days. She nodded to show him she understood.

"What have I been assigned to do, sir?"

"Capture a man who loves woman but despises men. He goes by the name Brady Arrington." Red's raspy but silky smooth voice had finally spoken up. Liz looked over to him.

"So why am I being assigned to take him down? Will I have any back up?"

"Well, because you are a woman and it is only on rare occasions that he actually speaks to men. If any man gets in his way or ruins a plan of his, he will do anything in his power to kill them. His favorite way to kill, is chaining men to a bed and pour acid onto them." Red chuckled and tilted his head to the side like he always does when he thinks something is obvious. "Of course you will have back up, Lizzie. Samar is already there. She will be our eye and your new partner."

"But Ressler is my partner." She stated trying to be nonchalant.

Red raised his eyebrows.

"Yes, Lizzie. Not for this case, however. Unless, of course, you have a death wish for him. I'm hoping that isn't the case, I've grown a soft spot for the man." He bit the inside of his cheek and went back on topic. You're leaving on my jet today, so when you are debriefed, I suggest you pack." That's when he snatched up his hat and left the room.

Cooper told her all the details and what the plan was. It seemed easy enough.

"You are released now, agent Keen." he grabbed his newspaper and began reading again.

As she was headed out, she caught a glimpse of Ressler staring at her. Probably wondering why she was leaving if she had only just got there. She was still walking towards the elevator when she saw him walking towards her. She did not wait for him, she did not care what he had to say or ask. So she got into the elevator and left without a word, trying to avoid Ressler's confused look while the elevator doors started closing in. Making It easier and easier for her to forget.

As she had just finished packing and was about ready to leave, when there was a knock at her door. Could it be Ressler? She was still mad at him, but that didn't stop the butterflies in her stomach when she thought he could be waiting at her door. She half ran half walked to her door and opened it in one swift movement.

"Dembe…." She sighed trying to hide her disappointment.

"Hello, Ms. Keen. Let me get your stuff."

He walked into her house without another word and grabbed her bags and walked out to where Red was waiting in the car. Skipping the greetings and pleasantries, she rolled her head to the side and stared out the window, watching the road as the car started moving.

After hours on Red's jet, they got to their destination. The hotel room Red had gotten her was marvelous. She was looking around and noticed how it was so thoughtfully decorated. Like it was made to make a person happy. Also, the view was tremendous. In fact, everything about it was only Ressler could be here too…._'Just stop, Liz. Stop thinking about him'_ but she just couldn't.

She heard a knock on her hotel room door and went and got it. But nobody was there. She looked down and saw a box. Liz grabbed it and closed the door, walking back into the safety of the room. She opened the box and what she found inside was a beautiful black cocktail dress. She picked it up to look at it when she saw a note fall to the floor.

'**Thought this would suit you well. Wear it tonight when you go to the party. -R'**

When she got to the party, she saw heads turn to look her way. All the glares and whispers and longing looks of men startled her and she walked a little faster. Apparently all the attention drew one of the men to was devastatingly handsome. He looked about her age and he had dark brown hair with striking ice blue eyes. His eyes reminded her of her partner who was back at the post office. Probably wondering where she was… '_Why do I keep thinking of you?'_

Then his voice yanked her out of her thoughts.

"Hello there gorgeous. May I ask what your name is?"

She was supposed to only be here to look for Arrington, but this guy had caught her attention.

"Samantha." She told him her undercover name. "And what's yours?"

"My names Brady Arrington. Would you like to have a dance?" he asked as he offered out his hand to her.

That took her as a shock. Usually The blacklisters on Red's list were old and honestly not the best looking. He was the exact opposite. I guess this just made her job a whole lot took the hand he held out and he pulled her close. They danced to the beat of the music and she was just about to make conversation with him until she heard a deep voice from behind Arrington.

"Excuse me, may I cut in?"

Arrington turned around and it revealed the face of her partner, Ressler.

Brady let go of Liz in disgust, not saying another word, and walked away. She could tell he was fuming. Red was right, he really didn't like men.

Ressler looked down at his feet while he took hold of Liz. But she was frozen. She snapped back into reality when she felt his hand rest lightly on her hip.

"Ressler what in the fucking hell are you doing here?" despite her anger towards him, she shifted into his touch.

"Making sure you don't get killed." He said as he gripped her a bit tighter.

"Red sent only me and Samar here for a reason. You just made your death bed." She hissed out her words like venom. She could see him wince. Then she remembered back to what Red said earlier. _"If any man gets in his way or ruins a plan of his, he will do anything in his power to kill them."_


	4. Fool Me Twice

Liz looked over to where Brady was standing. A deep scowl was etched on his face. She suddenly felt afraid for Ressler and nudged herself even closer to him. If that was even possible. She found herself dug in between his shoulder and neck. The warmth of his body made her feel safe. She reminded herself that it wasn't her that needed to be safe in this moment; it was him. The thought of losing him was utterly and completely terrifying. She couldn't lose the last and only person that she trusted with her life. No. Not even over her dead body.

"Keen?" She heard him whisper through the beat of the music, his hot breath curling over her ear and down her neck. She tensed up her muscles in an attempt to avoid shivering.

"What?" She shut her eyes closed, still trying to rid the feeling away.

"He's gone." He whispered even lower. Her mind went blank and she opened her eyes again.

"Who?"

He pulled his face away from her ear and looked quizzically at her.

"Arrington?"

"Oh, yes. Sorry." She tried to discreetly make her way back into the crook of his neck.

"Liz, what's wrong?" He pulled farther away. She instantly missed his warmth but the sensation of the moment was over with. His question brought back the feeling of anger, and her blood boiled once more.

"Ressler, you're in danger. This whole mission is now down the drain. You shouldn't have come."

"Liz…" He started to protest, but she cut him off.

"No, Ressler, you really _shouldn't_ have come." She was trying her hardest to keep quiet, but her anger almost always got the best of her. A few heads that were near turned to look at her. She didn't bother to acknowledge them.

"We need to go. _Now_." She abruptly let go of her grip on him.

It was a start of a new song, but they had no time for dancing. She grabbed his hand, firm and secure, and led him out the way they came.

"Liz, what's going on?"

"Res, just be quiet and follow me, okay?"

He stayed silent and did as he was told.

When they were out of the building, she started to run, and Ressler ran right along with her. The black cocktail dress that Red had given her earlier flowed whimsically behind her… it was like a dream; but what was about to happen was a nightmare.

A shot rippled through the air.

Liz's heart raced when she heard the sound. The sound of what could only be a gun. A gun with a bullet aimed for them. For Ressler.

She heard the thud of a body hitting the ground behind her and found that Ressler's large calloused hand was no longer in her smaller one.

Liz skitted to a halt and turned on heel. She found herself kneeling beside him, searching frantically for where the bullet hit. She found it almost immediately, looking at the blood already soaking his tux. He was shot to the far bottom right of his abdomen.

"NO!" She screamed.

Ressler's pants and grunts of pain where deafening already. She racked her brain for ideas. She had no extra clothing she could take off, so she pressed on the open wound with her own two hands. She looked over to his pale face and saw his eyes drooping lower and lower.

"No, Ressler! Keep your eyes open!" She wailed. As if her screams could keep him awake.

"Liz…. Lo…look…" He panted in between his words. She could tell he was struggling to keep his eyes open. She looked into his closing eyes, seeing distress and pain.

She heard the sound of footsteps coming towards them. But her focus was on Ressler and Ressler alone.

"Liz!" He groaned as he tried with all the strength he could muster to push her away. "Look out!"

She wouldn't even turn her head from Ressler. Every inch of her body was in lock down. She couldn't leave this person….She couldn't leave Donald Ressler. This wasn't how it was supposed to end. She didn't know what his fate was, but it couldn't be this_. Please never this_. Tears were cascading out of her red rimmed eyes.

His warnings to Liz looked as if it didn't even attain her. She was so focused on pressing on his wound, that she didn't even notice that Arrington was behind her. His gun just about to put a bullet straight through her head. Ressler struggled beneath her, and screamed her name over and over again. She wouldn't budge.

A shot rang out a second time that day.

"NO!" He grabbed at Liz and pulled her into him. In the background he could see Arrington drop to the ground with a bullet through his forehead. As he fell, Ressler could see Samar standing in a shooting stance, dropping her gun and started running towards them.

It wasn't Liz who was shot.

It was Brady.

Only Brady.

The relief he felt shouldn't have been there, considering he was the one bleeding out on the cool ground. The relief was there because Liz was safe. The only reason he was still awake was because of the adrenaline rush he got when he thought Liz was going to be shot. Yet, here Liz was, with her warm body against his colder one. His breath getting more shallow, and hers getting more frantic.

"Ressler!" her face was so close to his. Her hand on his clammy cheek.

Now his adrenaline was going farther and farther out of reach… Resulting to him going further and further into unconsciousness. Shouts and screams that now faded to whispers and murmurs surrounded him as he went into comatose.

Ressler had surgery to take the bullet fractures out. His hip had been fractured and amazingly, the bullet didn't hit any vital organs. Samar was currently being questioned on her decision to shoot Brady, and Liz was sure that it could be justified. Samar really was only protecting her coworkers. If she hadn't shot Brady dead, it would've been Ressler and Keen to take his place.

Liz watched his vitals closely with her hand outstretched on his larger one. She made soft small little circles with her thumb on the crease in between his thumb and pointer finger. Liz had been there for five hours. Three of those hours were when Ressler was under the knife. She was about to wander into the depths of sleep when she heard a door close behind her. Jerking herself upright and towards the noise, she saw Kimmy standing in the middle of the room. '_Can we ever have a moment alone_…?'

Without moving her hand from Ressler's, Liz spoke.

"Kimmy, so sorry to see you in such bad circumstances. Don seems to be doing fine." She never called Ressler by his first name; but she _was _talking to Kimmy_. _Who was apparently up Ressler's ass all the time. Liz spoke all business, she just wanted to be alone_. Leave dammit_.

"Am I interrupting anything?" The blonde woman set aside what Liz had just said. Seems like Kimmy wasn't up for any nice chit chat either. The tension in the room could be cut with a knife.

A groan from Ressler caught both their attention and they turned towards his pale figure.

"Liz…" He puffed out. His eyes were still closed shut.

"Ressler… Hey." She replied soothingly while stroking his thumb with her own.

Kimberly just stood there watching, not believing that he said Liz's name instead of hers.

"Liz, are you okay?" He opened his eyes and didn't even notice Kimberly.

"The real question is, are you?" She said with a smile. Ressler's last concern was always himself.

"Do you need anything? Water? A nurse?"

"No... Please stay." He grumbled as he grabbed her arm in an attempt to make her stay put.

"I'm not going anywhere, Res." She said while putting her hand on his cool cheek. He uncharacteristically leaned into her touch. Beads of sweat were on his forehead and she wiped them away with her other hand. "I'll always be here." They were staring into each other eyes now, unable to break them away.

They heard the sound of someone clearing their throat.

"Don, it's me, Kimmy." She was done watching this ordeal. Ressler looked into Liz's eyes for a few more seconds before turning to the woman standing.

"Keen, can you give us a second?"

Liz swallowed and took her hand off his face. Did he just call her Keen? Did he just ask her to leave? She was dumbfounded. Just seconds ago, he was almost begging her not to leave. Nevertheless she got up and left the room. Hot tears were on her cheeks and she wasn't going to hold them back. She watched through a crack in the blinds of a window as Kimmy gratefully took her spot in the room. _She really hated that bitch…_

She wasn't there long though. Liz noticed that almost as soon as the blonde woman sat down, she got up. She also noted that Kimberly looked furious as she stomped out of the room, trying her hardest to slam the door shut; but failing because it was the kind of door that would slowly shut itself after you opened it.

Keen had to mentally scold herself for almost laughing. She was acting childish and she needed to stop. She realized Kimmy wasn't the only one who was angry with Ressler today. For the first time since she met the woman, they were on the same page. She didn't like it. Not one bit. She thought Ressler cared about her, but he just shrugged her off like she was nothing. Fool me once Ressler, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Without looking into Ressler's room again, she left. She wasn't going to let herself be used anymore….Not by anyone…. Not by Ressler.

**Don't worry guys, our favorite pair will have a happy ending. I feel kinda bad for always ending it on a bad note! I hope you guys like my story so far. Please review, it would mean a lot!**


	5. Giving Truth

**So, this is my last chapter for this story. Another will be coming soon! I wanted to make it longer and despite my delightful beta pl3as3-tak3-m3-t0-w0nd3rland 's suggestions, I couldn't quite fit it in. Thanks for reading this weird story. Please review and tell me your opinion. Hope everyone enjoys this story. (:**

She wasn't too far away when she heard beeping alarms inside of Ressler's room. Forgetting her anger towards him, she ran back to his room to find him standing up.

"Ressler what are you doing?" Her heart was pounding. _My gosh, am I overreacting_?

"I was going to follow you." He tried to walk towards her but grimaced in pain.

She walked over to him to help him back to the bed, but when she got to him, he wrapped his strong muscular arms around her. She was taken aback, but seconds later, she found herself cuddling into his chest. Listening to the rhythmic beats of their hearts.

"Liz, I need to explain what happened between me and Kimmy…"

She froze in his embrace, but didn't dare to move away from him. She listened on as his chest rose and fell.

"So… I know I messed up… And I'm sorry. But, I broke up with her. I just need you to know that, whatever this is between us, is important to me…. You're important to me." He rambled and her eyes were wet with tears of a mix of sadness and happiness.

"If it was important to you, why would you go out with her in the first place?" She wasn't mad anymore, just curious. Her tone was questioning, but sweet. It looked like he was ready for this question, because he answered right away.

"To get my mind off of you. I've never…" He sighed before going on. Tightening his grip around her. "I've never felt so protective over anyone in my life. Our job is dangerous. I know that. You know that. Sometimes, I just feel like I can never do enough to shield you from some of the bad stuff. I just… I just thought that maybe if I went out with someone else, I could stop feeling so strongly about you….But it didn't work because I realized I didn't want to stop having feelings for you."

She looked up to him finding his eyes already looking down at her. Her breath got caught in her throat as she thought of what she was about to say.

"I love you, Res…" She said softly. She knew how she felt. She felt this way for a while now. It just took courage and time to actually come out and say it.

Then it hit him like a ton of bricks. He knew he loved her, he just never knew how much until just now. He didn't think he could ever feel so many things in his life. Nevertheless good things. All he could think of was about how far they've come from partners. First, not trusting each other, to giving comfort, then slowly becoming to trust each other, becoming friends, then best friends, to covering Each other's asses every once in a while. Now this. This is something he'd never guessed to happen. He was so bottled up he would never let anyone in. Until Liz. Of course, there was Audrey. Yes, he loved her with every ounce of his being. But it wasn't like this… There was nothing he could begin to describe on how he felt about Liz. It was the kind of feeling you only see in movies. They were made for each other. Or at least he felt that way.

His lips went up into a toothy grin and he put his warm hand on her cheek. He searched her pool of sea blue eyes and found how beautiful they were. He took a small step back and swallowed. Slowly leaning into her, their breaths mixing in the air around them. A million things were going through their minds right now. They can never go back, and they didn't want to. His lips.. Where so close.. Just a breath away… And…

"Mr. Ressler, please get back into bed." A nurse said while rushing into the room.

They slowly let go of the hold they had on each other as he hesitantly listened to the nurse. '_Why does this always happen every time we have a moment?'_

The nurse put back the IV and all the other equipment he ripped off himself not too long ago and she left them alone again.

After that day, she would come help him with his therapy once every week. Sometimes more if she could. He slowly but surely got better. He would be at work sooner than they all though. But It was Ressler, so what were they thinking?

Liz was looking over some files as she drank her coffee. Work really sucked without Ressler there. She missed the daily routine with him. Coffee, laughs that only they could pull out of each other, then when it was time to leave, wishing each other a goodnight.

She read most of the file when she heard their office door open. She looked up expecting it to be Aram or Cooper, but Ressler was there. Holding a cane in his hand.

"Looks like Cooper and I exchanged spots for a few weeks." He said referring to the cane.

She got up, practically running to him and hugged him."Ouch." He chuckled as he wrapped her into his embrace. Such a familiar feeling that she really only got with him. A feeling of safety… A feeling of love. Right then and there, they forgot where they were. As far as they were concerned, they were the only two people on earth.

"Sorry…" She smiled into his chest without letting go. Boy, was she happy he was back.

"I love you, Liz."

Her heart stopped, he had just said it back. She was scared he never would. The annoying little butterflies in her stomach seemed to melt, as did she.

Suddenly his lips were on hers. His kiss was desperate but so full of love. Telling her things in ways only actions could. In a few seconds, hers had just as much force as his. His hands caressed her cheeks as Her hands found their way into his hair. She never felt like this before. And she didn't want it to ever stop. If she knew he could be this intoxicating, she would've kissed him sooner.

They pulled away, with his thumbs making small circles on her baby soft cheeks. He rested his forehead on top of hers, as they smiled. Then they heard the sound of many people clapping. They looked out towards the sound, and found the whole office watching them through their window. Aram and Samar had the widest grins as they clapped their hands in delight. Their cheeks burning as they laughed nervously. But they wouldn't take it back. Not for the world.


End file.
